Jasmine Plant Care, How to Grow Arabian Jasmine Plant

Arabian Jasmine (Jasminum sambac, olive family Oleaceae) is an evergreen shrub native to India, but is also planted in most tropical climates around the world. It is the national flower of Indonesia and the Philippines. Arabian jasmine is also called as Biblical Jasmine or mogra or mograw or motiya or yasmeen in India, sampaguita flower in Philippines and melati putih in Indonesia.Continue reading below on Jasmine growing information and Jasmine plant care for growing in pots, indoors and outdoors with attention to planting, watering, fertilization, and pests and diseases. The instructions are the same for growing all types of Jasmines including Arabian Grand Duke of Tuscany.

Jasmine Plant Information

Sampaguita flower is the general name of Jasminum sambac species including different names as Arabian jasmine, Philippine jasmine, Kampupot, Melati, Grand Duke of Tuscany and Pikake in Hawaii.

Jasmine Plant Types, Varieties of Jasmines

There are three main varieties or types of jasmine depending on the shape of leaves and flowers structure. These are

Maid of Orleans: Single flowers with five rounded petals.

(Bela) Belle of India: Single or semi-double or flowers with elongated petal, single and double flowers on the same plant.

Grand Duke of Tuscany: Clusters of flowers (sometimes single flower). Only the central flower is truly double-rossete. Side flowers are semi-double, and like miniature roses.

Arabian Jasmine Mogra Flower

Jasminum sambac grows like a shrub or a vine to a height of up to 3 m with a 1 m spread. The plant bears dark green glossy foliage and white flowers. I have seen Indian jasmine growing on fence, too dense producing thousands of flowers.

In flowers of some jasmine, like star jasmine and Chameli - Jasminum grandiflorum, the petals are thin, while there are multiple petalled Arabian Jasmine flowers, typically around 2.5 cm in diameter, which look like small white roses. The flower has more than five and in some varieties even nine petals.

The mogra flowers are borne in clusters with a minimum of three flowers, usually on the ends of branches. The flowers are white or yellow in color, some varieties can produce slightly reddish blooms.

The night blooming jasmine (growing night blooming jasmine) blooms only at night and are very fragrant. The fragrant flowers last for only one day once they have opened their petals.

The jasmine blooms for 6-9 months of the year. The flowers are used to produce some of the world’s most popular fragrances, scented tea and oil. The jasmine perfume is favorable of many people.

In Asian countries, many women put jasmine garland made up of buds and flowers for their hair adornments, symbolizing grace and elegance.

The fruits of Jasmines are berries that turn black when ripe.

You can maximize the growth of jasmine indoors in containers or outdoor in ground to get up to 9 months of fragrant flowers. I grow Jasmine bush in pots and outdoors in ground in Sydney, Australia.

Growing Jasmine Plant

Position For Growing Jasmine Plant: Growing Temperatures

The Jasmine shrub prefers full sun, at least 6 hour of sun light, but it will tolerate partially shaded conditions. It grows in intermediate to warm temperatures. Where the night temperature is below 0°C, the plant should be moved indoors. The Arabian jasmine can be grown in USDA hardiness zones 9 to 11. In USDA plant hardiness zones Zones 6 to 9, you can grow Winter Jasmine (J. nudiflorum), which can bloom during winter also. Common Jasmine (J. officinale) can be grown in Zones 7 to 10.

Soil for Arabian Jasmine Plant

The soil requirement is for all types of jasmine plants, viz.Grand Duke of Tuscany, Maid of Orleans and belle of India is the same.

Plant in a free draining rich soil by mixing two parts loam, two parts peat moss and one part river sand (garden soil). You can also add coconut coir or organic compost (making compost) into the soil to increase the moisture retention.

Planting Jasmine

Buy a small plant from your local nursery or grow your own by propagating Jasmine from a cutting. Know how to propagate Jasmine from cuttings. If you bought the plant from a nursery, then you can transfer it to ground at any time.

Dig a hole that is twice the size of the container of the plant. Once you put the plant in the hole, half fill it with the soil.

Take out the plant from the container and place it in the hole.

Fill the surrounding area with soil. Make a raised boundary of soil around the plant and fill with water.

Put a 2-3 inch layer of mulch around the plant.

When grown, tie the stems to prevent from drooping and causing damage to flowers and plant.

You can plant your Arabian Jasmine Mogra in a pot using the above mentioned soil. The pot should have good drainage with several holes. Keep newly re-potted plant in bright, indirect light for a few days.

How To Care For Jasmine Plant

Watering Jasmine Vine

Allow the soil to dry out before watering. Water Jasmine plant thoroughly until water comes out the drainage holes, but always keep the drip tray empty. Reduce the frequency of watering in winter.

Fertilization Jasmine Plant

Every month from spring to fall, feed your indoor jasmine plant with a liquid fertilizer with the dilution as recommended on the label of the fertilizer. Do not feed if the plant is water-stressed. First water the plant and then feed. I feed my jasmine plant with comfrey tea fertilizer every time after flowers have finished.

Fertilizing the Outdoor Jasmine VinePrune the Arabian jasmine plant in the winter before fertilization.If the jasmine plant is in ground, spread the fertilizer granules or powder on the soil up to the drip line and rack up. Water the soil deeply, to the top 6 inches. Fertilizer quarterly.

Sampaguita Jasmine Mogra Flowers Gajra

How To Prune Jasmine Vine

You can prune the branches that extend between 6-8 feet. As flowers grow best on new branches, pruning in mid-summer will encourage the growth of new wood producing more flowers.

If your plant is not flowering, you should trim the branches at the tips and give a liquid feed high in potassium to encourage new growth and flowering.This is the best way to flower your jasmine vine.

I usually trim the branches after every flush of flowers.

Jasmine Pests and Diseases

Jasmine plants can be affected by pests like aphids, caterpillars, mites and mealy bugs; and fungus diseases like powdery mildew and stem blight. These pests and diseases should be treated before they damage the plant, otherwise the jasmine buds will be turning brown.

I control most of the jasmine problems by pruning and spraying some fungicide regularly.

If your Arabian jasmine plant does not produce flowers then you should prune the plant and fertilize it. The new growth will produce jasmine buds at the tips of the new growth.

I just bought an Arabian jasmine plant at Lowe's in either a 3 or 5-gallon pot. I live in Zone 8b in NW FL. I have two other types of jasmine that are planted outdoors and that never freeze. However, I'm afraid to plant this one in the ground as we sometimes have harsher winters that we had this year. Since it gets so big, what size pot do you recommend putting this one in and will it need a trellis to climb?Reply

The Arabian jasmine are of different varieties, some may need a trellis and some may not. So keep the plant without a trellis to start with. When the plant grows, you will know if it needs a trellis. It is a good idea not to plant in a big pot in the begining. Change the plant to next size, when you see roots coming out at the bottom from drainage holes or after one year. Always use a free draining fertile soil containing cow manure or compost whenever you transplant into a next size pot. This way the plant will become root bound and in the roots in the fresh soil at each change. Also a larger pot with less roots may cause the root system to rot.Reply

Hello sir, I have 3 jasmine plants, after initial transplant shock they startf to grow quite well and several buds were formed. However the flowers when bloomed were very weak, distorted and also fell off within a few hours. The leaves look very soft and there is no new growth on one of the plants. I have treated the plants with organic pesticide and fungicide and also trimmed the one which stopped growing. Can you please advise what could probably be the problem and how do I fix it. Any advise you may have will be greatly appreciated. Thank you.Reply

Hi sir. I got Arabian Jasmine plant last year and I re potted in big pot. It is giving new stems and long shoots and it is very healthy. problem is at one point it will stop with out buds(it grows up to beginning of the bud.but I don't see any bud forming)Reply

I live in cambodia. I grow my mogea Jasmine in November 2015 now my Jasmine plant are getting bigger and very long it grow like vine one of the branch reach 6 meter it claim on my terli. I am happy to see it get biger. my neighbor always ask why my mogra Jasmine are bigger.....sorry English is not my native language.Reply

Hello, I bought an Arabian jasmine 3 days ago from a nursery. There were a couple of leaves that were starting to turn yellow. Its soil was so dry, I gave it a good thorough water & let it drain & kept it in the yard where it gets full sun (8am - 9pm).

Now, there are a couple more leaves that have started to turn yellow also.

The weather here has been quite hot during the days (23-32 degrees Celsius) with relatively warm nights (15-20 degrees Celsius).